France Pursues Militants in Mali

By

Drew Hinshaw in Bamako, Mali and

David Gauthier-Villars in Paris

Feb. 4, 2013 8:09 a.m. ET

The French military intensified its chase of Islamist militants in Mali's extreme north with fighter jets and special forces, as Paris pressed West African countries to speed troop deployments to urban centers recently freed from the grip of insurgents.

Soon after France sent troops to Mali last month, the al Qaeda-linked militants abandoned Timbuktu and other desert cities they had been controlling since the spring of 2012....